The Truth About Jack
by Hazel Sage
Summary: One-shot. Becka's POV when she finally learns about Jack's Weir heritage in The Dragon Heir


I was in a sound sleep when suddenly, I was being shaken. I woke up almost instantly, but my eyes weren't even open when I heard a voice.

"Mom," Jack's voice muttered, sounding hoarse and strained.

My eyes snapped open and focused on the boy in front of me. Jack looked like his normal self after he got up from bed – tousled hair, half-open eyes, and rumpled clothes. Then, I looked closer.

Jack most certainly did _not_ look like he normally did after getting out of bed. He was covered in a sheen of sweat, his eyes were completely alert, and, to my surprise, he was covered in mud and blood.

He didn't say a word after he woke me up, just looking at me pleadingly. I snapped awake, threw on some sweats, and ran for the phone.

It was dead, so I sent some runners out to the Childers' house, Nick Snowbeard's house, Fitch's house, Seph's house, and to some of the neighbors like Iris Bolingame and Mercedes Foster.

An hour later, we were all gathered at Stone Cottage. Nick had shown up, looking strangely more aged than normal. Jack's old girlfriend, Alicia Middleton, had come with him and was surprisingly quiet. She seemed to be trying to catch the eye of Jason Haley, however, who had come with Seph; apparently they'd just had a fight or something. Jason was being twitchy, like normal, and checking the time on his phone every few seconds. Seph looked brooding and dangerous – I swear he looked like his skin smoking or something. Mercedes looked like a construction worker just come off of work and Iris was slumped in the corner, seeming worse for wear from being woken up so early. Will's father, Bill Childers, and Will's uncle, Ross Childers, looked awkward; they probably felt like they were missing out on some secret or something… I know I did. Will and Fitch, Jack's close friends, stuck close to him and his girlfriend Ellen.

Ellen and Jack were a whole other story. Both were covered in mud, blood, and sweat… More so than any of the others. They both looked restless, eager for something. They seemed frustrated from unfinished business or something like that. I noticed just now how alike they were – their muscular frames, their impatience, and their agile movements…

"I think we're all here," I told my son. "Now suppose you tell us what's going on."

"This had better be good," Ross added gruffly, yawning and glaring at Will. "_Real_ good."

Nick used the staff that he never went anywhere without to help himself to his feet. "Ross. Bill. Becka. These young people are about to tell you an extraordinary story. But I can assure you that it's absolutely true. I hope you will listen to what they have to say with an open mind." He nodded to Jack.

Nick had aroused my curiosity and I was now even more eager to see what the kids would say.

Jack stood up and cleared his throat. "So… That is, we… ah…" He seemed to be unable to put his thoughts into words. He reached over his shoulder and, just as I realized he had some sort of strap around it, he pulled out a sword, laying it across the kitchen table. Ellen quickly pulled another sword off of her person and laid it next to Jack's.

We all stared, unable to speak. The swords were both brilliantly made and excellent works of art. But they also looked very effective at their job, which frightened me.

I finally found my voice. "Jack. Where did these swords come from? They look like museum pieces."

Ellen reverently placed her hand on the sword that she'd put on the table. "Waymaker was taken from a hoard of weapons in Raven's Ghyll, in Cumbria, U.K. Near where you stayed with Mr. Hastings that time. It is one of the seven great blades, made by sorcerers under the rule of the dragon Aidan Ladhra. Jason… ah… found it and… um…"

She trailed off as Bill, Ross, and I stared at her. What on earth could she mean? Did she truly believe that magic created these swords under people who were ruled by a dragon? Ellen looked down, blushing.

Jack rested a hand at the base of her spine in comfort and touched his blade with equal veneration. "Mom. This is Shadowslayer. It's another one of the seven. It belonged to Great-Great-Grandmother Susannah. We – Will and Fitch and I – dug it up from her grave, down in Coalton County."

"Susannah owned a sword?" I frowned suspiciously at Jack. Susannah had been a pacifist, like me. Why would she own a sword? I looked towards Will and Fitch, waiting for the joke.

"Susannah was a magical warrior," Fitch said. "Like Ellen and Jack."

I couldn't say a word – I was stunned.

Will continued. "They've been fighting off an army of wizards, Ms. Downey. Remember when we went down to Coal Grove with Aunt Linda to do genealogy? We found the sword, but then wizards attacked us, trying to steal it, and we had to hide in a church. Aunt Linda pulled up in the parking lot, and Jack, he flamed…"

"Linda? What about Linda?" I interrupted. They're saying that my sister was involved in this crazy tale? "You're saying she's a warrior too?"

Well, if you thought about this in their terms, Jack and Ellen being warriors made sense, seeing their build and apparent possession of swords… But Linda? She's so petite and small – there's no way she could fight like that…

"Well," Will cleared his throat. "Ah, no. She's an enchanter."

"An enchanter," Ross said, grinding the heel of his hand into his forehead. "Right." I remembered all of the times he'd asked Linda out before it was known that she was dating Hastings.

Once again, if I was living in their story, this would make sense. Linda had a strange way of almost always convincing you to do what she wanted.

"We made it back to Trinity, but then wizards came after Jack here," Fitch said. "Remember when those dudes tried to snatch him from the high school and Mr. Hastings chased them off?"

I felt my face harden. I hadn't believed anyone that day. Jack and Hastings were both hiding something after the whole event, and the two men who'd been behind it both had been completely untrustworthy.

"They were traders," Will explained. "There was this huge price on Jack's head, and they were going to sell him at auction. You see, wizards play warriors in these big magical tournaments. Called the Game."

Jack and Ellen both shuddered slightly, involuntarily.

"You're telling me those men were _wizards_. And Leander Hastings chased them off?" I lifted an eyebrow. I believed their first story much more than this one.

"Well, actually, they're sort of buried under the school parking lot. He had to do something with the bodies before the police came." Jack admitted, casting an apologetic look at Ross.

"Mr. Hastings is a wizard, too," Will said. "So is Nick."

We all turned to stare at Nick. He nodded his head slightly. "Indeed," he said. "I'm afraid so."

You have to admit that Nick really did fit the stereotype… White hair, long beard, old man, wise man, and big staff… But this was utterly impossible.

Bill looked from Nick to Will before saying, "You got us all out of our beds to talk about… about some kind of role-playing game?"

I instantly relaxed. That must be the explanation for their strange story.

"No," Jason said, speaking up. "It's real. And there's going to be a massacre if we don't… if we don't do something."

Bill glared at Jason, who honestly didn't really seem that reliable. "Now hold on. A _massacre_?"

"Wizards have this town surrounded," Mercedes said. "We put up a Weirwall, a magical barricade. That's the only thing that's keeping them out at the moment. Now the wizards have put up their own wall – a wizard wall. They mean to capture or kill everyone who tries to leave."

I stared at my neighbor. What was with this Weirwall thing? How would the wizards have this town surrounded?

"Look," Ross said. "I've been in and out of town a dozen times over the past two weeks. I haven't seen any one wall, let alone two."

"You can't see the Weirwall," Mercedes explained. "It's invisible to the Anaweir. The non-gifted. Those without Weirstones. Like you."

The new vocabulary confused me, though Mercedes explained it. This was too much for my head. And I still didn't even know if they were telling the truth.

"The other wall went up tonight," Jason said. "That one, you can see. I can show you, but we'll have to be careful. They're already out there waiting."

"You expect us to believe that someone built a wall all the way around the town since sunset." Ross said disbelievingly.

Mercedes sniffed in disgust. "Well. It _is_ an ugly thing. Slipshod. But we have to assume it's effective."

"You've seen this wall?" Bill asked.

"I have," Jason said. "When they start grabbing the townies, there'll be mass panic. We have to find a place to stash the Ana – the non-gifted – until this war is over. One way or another."

Seph spoke up for the first time, sounding dangerous and intense. "We're wasting time. The morning commute begins in two hours. We've got sentries posted to turn people back, but anyone who slips through will be trapped inside the outer wall and taken. I'm not going to let that happen. I'll immobilize them all if I have to."

I blinked in shock at him. He sounded so… powerful and forceful. I didn't know what to make of him. "Seph?"

"Look," Ross growled, obviously exasperated. "I've known most of you kids all your lives, but I have to say, you're scaring me. I'm thinking we should all get back to bed and see if those wizards have disappeared by morning."

"Listen with an open mind," Nick repeated softly.

"Hey," Jason looked out the terrace doors toward the lake. "Come look at this."

We all crowded onto the terrace, lining up against the wall, cringing against the ice pellets that stung us.

Jason extended his hands and suddenly, light spilled from his fingers, traveling across the lake until it struck a thick black barrier. The barrier itself looked like a layer of smoke with greenish lightning playing around its edges.

"What the hell?" Ross stared out at the lake, scrubbing his palm across his face. "Is that some kind of waterspout or squall line or…"

"It's part of the wizard wall," Jason said flatly. "And it wouldn't be a good idea to try and take your boat through that. It means there's no escape by water."

"How'd you do that?" Bill demanded. "That thing with your hands?"

"Magic," Jason said matter-of-factly. "Get used to it, because you're going to see a lot more of it, whether you like it or not."

I stared at him, still in shock. Did he truly just make light come out of his fingertips? Just like that?

Jack ducked back inside the house and grabbed his sword, which he apparently called Shadowslayer. He strode confidently back onto the terrace.

"Stand back," he warned.

As I watched in stunned silence, Jack grabbed the hilt of Shadowslayer and swung it expertly in a wide arc. Bolts of flame shot out from the sword and Jack seemed to look content. The flames struck the wall and Jack sent a few more blasts after them.

When the smoke cleared, the wall was still standing, but it certainly looked more ragged than before.

"God almighty," Bill said, after a moment.

A burnt scent was pungent in the air as the breeze pushed it towards us; dogs barked along the shoreline.

I slumped against the wall, bracing myself with my hands. I could feel my face rearranging itself to accommodate all of the emotions swirling through my thoughts right now… Astonishment. Fear. Regret. Guilt. "This had got to be a dream," I said.

"It's okay, Mom," Jack sounded embarrassed, sitting beside me and leaning his sword against the wall.

Ellen looked at us for a moment before herding the rest of the group inside. "Take ten, Jack. We'll bring the townies up to date." She closed the doors.

"There's not much time," my son said. "I'm sorry it had to come out like this."

"I must've been blind," I said, feeling guilty as I looked up at Jack. "When did you know?"

"Not till my sophomore year. Warriors don't manifest until they're old enough to… um… fight."

"But what about after that? Why didn't you tell me?" I grabbed Jack's chin in my hand, forcing him to look me in the eye. "I should have asked more questions. You've had to deal with this all on your own."

"Mom. You asked," Jack said, sounding surprisingly desperate. "About a hundred times you asked what was up. I just couldn't tell you. I didn't know how…" He paused for only a moment, looking down at himself. "How was I supposed to tell you I'm a warrior? A hard-wired killer? This is so totally opposed to everything you believe in – that I've believed in, all my life." He leaned his arms on the wall and stared at the lake. "I mean, I wasn't totally on my own. Linda knew, all along. And Nick was here, to keep an eye on me, I guess. He taught me some wizardry. And Hastings taught me how to fight."

"Hastings." I let out a long breath, thinking of the time I've spent with him. This must've been the reason for the tension between the two of them those few times. "What about Ellen?"

"Ellen's had the life I might've had if… things were different." He paused, looking tense and slightly angry. Ellen must've had a hard life. "They sent her here to kill me. And she could've. But she didn't."

Seph stuck his head out the doorway. "Jack." I was glad for the interruption, allowing me time to gather my thoughts. Ellen had been sent to kill my son?

Jack looked down at me. "All year you and Dad have been trying to get me to focus on my future, I don't know if I have a future, if I'm even going to get through the year. I know we need to talk. And we will. But for now I want to say I love you. And I'm sorry."

I quickly stood up and pulled his face down to my level to kiss him on the forehead. "I love _you_, Jack," I said fiercely, hoping he could understand how much I meant this. "And I believe in you. Wizard, warrior, whatever." And with that, I led him back into the house.

If this crisis hadn't been so horrible, I think that I'd like it and be thankful for it. You know why?

Because no matter how insane and frightening it was, it inspired my son to tell the truth.

Finally.

**A/N: Always wanted Becka to find out earlier, but at least the scene was in the book! I wanted to explore Becka's feelings about this moment. Written a while ago, but I'm reasonably satisfied with it. Thanks for reading!**


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